


Enemy Fire

by NekoElena



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Angst, Elemental Mages, F/F, F/M, Female Reader, Forced Marriage, Hiding in Plain Sight, Monsters were never locked underground, Some Fluff, Three Kingdoms, genocide of a race, lots of fighting, monster children
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-01-08
Updated: 2018-08-23
Packaged: 2019-03-02 01:17:20
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 6
Words: 15,518
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13307334
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NekoElena/pseuds/NekoElena
Summary: The monsters and the humans are all above ground. The lands are split into three different factions. Monster, Mage, Human. Humans are allowed to live in any of the three factions. Monsters and Mages must ask the respected kings and queens to live anywhere other than their faction. Some monsters and mages give up their faction and roam the streets as merchants. There was one other faction, the Elemental Mages. In fear of their power they were killed to near extinction. You are one of the last and hides your magic to stay alive.Updates Every Wednesday~





	1. Kidnappers

**Author's Note:**

> I wanted to start this now to give me a kick in the ass to actually write the whole thing. I don't plan to make this a very long fic but it will have a decent amount of chapters. I don't know yet. I won't have an update schedule but I'll try to at least have one chapter posted every month at minimum.
> 
> Hope you enjoy!

Ting Ting Ting

Your hammer hits the red hot metal on the anvil below you sending sparks around your feet. You used only a quarter of your actual strength in your hits.

Ting Ting Ting

Monsters and humans alike watched you work as you just kept hammering. You were shaping a sword for one of the guards in this kingdom. They all thought you had the strength to hammer the metal on your own. None of them knew you didn’t, none of them knew you worked the metal with your magic.

Sizzzzzzzz

You smiled as the heat of metal on water hit your face. It was always refreshing to you. You loved working with metal. As one of the last elemental mages, that you knew of, your affinity was for metal. You could work the earth but only if you concentrated very hard. Metal just came easy to you. But because you were an elemental mage, no one could know how you made your swords.

Flipping the metal around you took it over to the rock you had to sharpen your blades and started to work there. You looked up at the people watching you and smirked to yourself that they were none the wiser. It was a risky thing, to hide in plain sight. A metal elemental working as a traveling blacksmith. A woman traveling blacksmith at that. 

To keep your identity a secret you had perfected your art. You hammered away like any other blacksmith but you pushed your magic into the metal little by little to shape the sword. Your hits would just be enough and it took you just as long as a human blacksmith because you used such small amounts of magic. You didn’t want any mage or monster to sense the magic and figure you out.

When you were finished the sword was complete you went to the back of your caravan. This was something you couldn’t let them see. It was your mark that you put on all your works. The small silhouette of a luna moth at the base of the blade. Making a bit of noise to make it seem like you were using another piece of metal you placed your hand over the space and felt your magic indent on the metal. Pulling back you smile and walked back out wiping the blade down.

Walking over to the fish woman who had ordered the sword you held it out to her. “Here you are ma’am. One sword at 42 length.” you state proudly. The sword was long and large and you had to make it seem like it was hard to carry so you held it with two hands. But really the metal was like a feather to your body.

The fish woman grinned at the sword with a toothy smile, “It’s not for me. It’s for my new guard and best friend.” She turned her head swinging her long red hair in the wind, “Papyrus! Hey nerd get over here!” She yelled.

Your eyes widened a bit as a large skeleton monster bounded up towards your booth. “What is it Undyne?! Am I finally able to see this surprise you have for me?!” He asked his voice booming in the crowd.

You flinched at how loud he was but figured it was just the way he spoke. Some monsters were different so you didn’t really hold it against them. Your family had been different too..when they had been alive. The sword was taken from your hands by the fish woman Undyne and held out to the boney soldier.

“A new sword for your new position! No more whimpy training swords!” Undyne announced, “Welcome to the Royal Guard!”

The skeleton monster seemed to get stars in his eye lights that you found adorable. He picked up the sword and it seemed to be just the right weight for him. You patted yourself on the back for that one. He looked it over and Undyne tossed a bag of gold to you that you happily caught. Nodding your head you turned back to your caravan to pack things up. They had been your last customers before you were leaving the monster kingdom.

You stuck to small towns and farmlands outside of the kingdoms but often times you ran low on supplies and gold. So you had to come into one of the three kingdoms. It was safer to go to the humans as none of them could sense magic and you would work freely there but it was so far from where you were. The mage kingdom was next but you tried to avoid going in there at all cost.

So between the long trip with little food to the human kingdom or suck it up and come into the monster kingdom, you had chosen to swallow your magic tightly. You had escaped all these years from the monsters realizing you were a mage and you wanted to keep it that way. With this bit of gold you would be able to get all you needed and leave the kingdom.

It was close to dusk when you were finally ushering your horse down the main road. It was the only road that cut straight across the kingdom to the exits. Each kingdom was protected by large walls that went around the castle and a large section of land that was their main city. While the mages called their city ‘Cornlatta’ the monsters had called it ‘Home’. The monsters always had such simple names.

Coming up to the wall gates you nodded to the royal guardsmen and they nodded to you as well. You were leaving the city so there wasn’t much they needed to look over. If there had been another soul in your cart they might have. But to them you were human and alone. Not a threat. To say monsters were simple in that sense was halfway true. Monsters are comprised of love, hope and magic. It’s not in their nature to hate or assume someone is evil/bad.

Mage’s and humans on the other hand. While humans are seen as weak and a non threat to the rest of the kingdoms, they do use it to their advantage when needed. Mage’s are stronger and more cunning. Even with their color of magic they have a certain amount of determination that lets them use their magic. Their color of magic is determined by their soul. Even then it is complicated to know what a mage will grow up to be just by the color of their soul. A green mage could be a great healer or turn it around and fight for the royal armies. But no matter what, a mage can only make specific things with their magic.

That was why they feared the elemental mages so much. You don’t know how much it was parallel with monster elementals but with the elemental mages, they had more determination than most. Their magic wasn’t limited to their soul, their magic could manipulate the magic that they were affiliated with. A powerful water elemental mage could move entire lakes and push the sea back so they could cross to the other side of lands. Earth elemental mages could make new mountains and dig down to the center of the earth.

It was because of this your parents weren’t surprised when the mages declared that all elemental mages to be wiped out. It started out small, just listing all the elementals and taking them for screening of their affinity. But when family members stopped coming home from these ‘screenings’ everyone started to see what was going on. To say it was a war made it seem like the mages spent years fighting them. When in reality it only took a few months.

Magic for monsters and mages are simple to understand. You have a well of magic in your soul and when it runs low you must stop using it and gather it back up. If your well runs dry you run the risk of dying. More so for monsters as their bodies are made of magic. For an elemental mage the well in their soul seems to be almost infinite. It regenerates faster than they can use it sometimes. Only in the rare cases of using it for something large has an elemental mage felt weak or winded. To counter this the mages made a magical band that saps a person’s magic from their body. They were able to place these on elemental mages and kill them easily in the battle. Those bands still gave you nightmares.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Before things got too dark you pulled off of the main road to camp for the night. You untied your horse from the cart and set up his water and food so that he could rest. Petting him softly you went into your caravan. With you inside and the doors and windows closed you were free to let your magic wash around you. Letting out a sigh you felt the magic slide around your body like cool metal.

Barely lifting your hand your pots and pans started to fly around the room. You had made all of your cooking materials with metal so that when you were alone you could shed off the extra magic. That was one thing that you ran the risk of. Too much magic, if you had too much in you without any output then things could get….dicey. 

Sitting down in your chair you relaxed a bit and moved your fingers around to have your magic make you some food. It was a simple stew with meat, potatoes, and peas. You were thankful that you had stopped in the monster village. You were able to get enough money to last you and you were able to get food supplies. Setting it on the stove to boil you closed your eyes to let yourself relax.

That was ended fairly quickly when you heard screaming. Sitting up in the chair you looked around in a panic wondering if you had heard it all right. With another scream you get out of your chair and you look out the window, pushing the cloth you kept in front of it aside. You didn’t see anything at first until a horse rider started going past.

Two more followed after him with one in the back. One of the horses in the middle held his rider and something fuzzy in the rider's arms. The fuzzy thing was the one screaming. Squinting your eyes you realized it was a monster. And the men on the horses were either humans or mages. Why did they have a monster.

With the way the monster was struggling you knew that it was not of the monsters free will. It was then you noticed that the monsters shirt had stripes. Cursing you knew then that it was a child. Thoughts of leaving the situation alone were dashed away when you saw the stripes. Growling you grabbed your own sword and flicked your fingers before you left the caravan. The metal horseshoes on the horses didn’t touch ground and all four horses toppled over.

You ran out with your sword and faced the men who were starting to stand, “I don’t know who you are or why you have that child but you had best release them to me now and be on your way!” You shout to the men.

The four men look at you, then each other and burst into laughter. The man holding the child kept ahold of them and pulled them to the back of the group. The other three pulled their own swords while the leader waves his hand, “Little lady, you best put the sword down and let us be on our way.” He says, “We don’t want to hurt you.” 

You look over the four men and don’t feel any magic spilling out of them. They weren’t mages then. By the looks of their clothes, cloths and plant fibers, you could see that they didn’t live in any of the kingdoms. Bandits then, but what did they want with this child? Questions for later you thought.

You held your sword higher and watched the men realize that you weren’t going to back down. One of the men on the right walked forward and raised his sword. You saw his intent to swing down and used your magic to push at his sword. The metal clashed with yours and you easily pushed it away and slashed at the man’s chest. You didn’t press hard so all you did was cut his clothes.

The man froze, looked down at his clothes, then looked over to his friends. The other two men growled at you and came forward as well. The man in the back holding the child didn’t move but you could see the rage in his eyes as well. The two men started to run then, flanking you on your sides. The first man raised his sword at your front and you couldn’t hold back this time. Taking a deep breath you raised your sword, hit at the first man and spun to hit the other two before they could land their hits. You used your magic to put what they would think is more force behind your blows so you could make their swords fly away.

It didn’t take long for you to disarm them and when you did the man holding the child got angrier. Throwing the child down to the ground he pulled his sword and rushed you. You ran towards him as well and at the last moment twirled to your right, avoiding his swing and slashing your sword into his back. The man cursed and fell to his knees. With this move you were now in between all four men and the child. The men seemed to realize this as well and glared at you.

You silently dared them to try and attack again. Minutes passed in your glaring match before the leader spit to the floor. “Lady, we need that kid and if we have to kill you to take him, we will.”

Sighing a bit you glanced back at the child. “Can you keep a secret for me?” You asked the scared child. The child seemed to contemplate your question before they nodded. Smiling you turned back to look at the men and dropped your sword.

The leader seemed to think you were giving up as he grinned, “Glad we could come to an understanding. Just move out of the way and-”

You started to laugh, cutting him off, “You think I’m surrendering?” You laughed harder and you let your hands go lax at your sides, “Oh that is a very funny joke.” 

The men looked at you confused as you threw your hands up and all four swords the men were holding were ripped from their hands. You watched their confused expressions as you clenched your hands and the metal folded into a giant ball above them. You let your magic leave the metal and it dropped to the ground with a thud. All four men were pale.

“M-mage….shit!” The leader said as he turned tail to run. “The money isn’t worth your life men! Run!” 

The other three seemed to agree with him as they started to run as well. You watched them dissapear before you turned back to the child. He was staring at you with fear. “Y-you aren’t a mage…” He whispered, “My…my parents told me about people like you…but your supposed to be dead….Elementals are supposed to be dead!” 

You gave a sad smile, “I’m not going to hurt you.” You said softly, “I’m just trying to live my life as a merchant. I’ll take you back to the monster village…and if you would feel safer turning me in then…then thats fine.” You said knowing there was nothing you could do about it anyway. You were taking him back, that wasn’t a question, and if he turned you in then….well, you could always get out of the bars before they found the elemental cuffs.

The child started to think about his options. It gave you time to notice his features. He were white and had the face of a goat. His ears were large and floppy on the side of his head and he had small horns starting to poke out of his fur. When he looked up at you again you could see he had made a decision.

“I won’t break my promise.” He said firmly, “Mom always said that you should never break them and I won’t start now.” 

You gave a thankful smile and nodded, “Alrighty then, let’s go inside and I can make you some food. You must be starving.”


	2. History

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry for such a long wait for this next chapter! I'm getting better and making the chapters. :) This is a lot more talking than anything and for that I'm sorry. Here you go! Hope you enjoy!

Setting a bowl of stew down in front of the monster child you took the seat across from him. You looked him over a bit more, some of the white fur on his ears were dirty. Probably because of those riders that threw him down. His striped shirt you noticed was green with yellow stripes. You took a bite of your own bowl of stew and just let him calm down a bit. When you were about half way through your food you finally spoke up.

“My name is (y/n) by the way.” You say simply.

The little goat looked up and gulped down the stew in his mouth. “I-…I’m Asriel.” 

You smiled and nodded, “When the sun comes back up I’ll take you back to Home.”

Asriel perked up, “You will?”

You didn’t like that he seemed shocked about that, “Of course I will. I’m not going to keep you from your family.” You said and took another bite of the stew, “Why do you look like I wouldn’t?”

Asriel flinched softly and looked down at the stew, “I just…I thought you would…keep me from my parents…because of who they are…”

You tilted your head. You didn’t recognize Asriel and if he looked like his parents like most monsters usually do then you didn’t know his parents. “I don’t know who your parents are kid. And honestly I don’t care. They are probably worried sick about you and I won’t break apart a family.”

Asriel didn’t look back up at you for a long time. You started to wonder who his family was. They had to be someone important for those bandits to kidnap him. Royalty? No, it couldn’t be. There were too many guards and it would be near impossible for them to get to anyone to kidnap them. Ignoring that you started to finish the rest of your food. When you saw that Asriel was done as well you lifted a finger and flicked it towards the sink. The bowls and spoons lifted and moved to the water bucket she had for dishes. She washed the dishes without looking at them and saw that Asriel was watching with amazement. 

You smiled a bit, “Are you curious?” you asked putting the bowls and such on your drying rack.

He nodded, “We have elemental monsters around the city but none of them can use metal.” He said his eyes going wide.

Knowing there were elemental monsters around it sent a small pang in your heart. You had seen a few and they had glanced at you but with you holding your magic down so hard they, hopefully, didn’t see you as close to them, “Elemental monsters and elemental mages are a bit different though.”

Asriel tilted his head, “How so?”

You pursed your lips, “Well…first off let me ask what you know about Elemental mages.”

Asriel started to play with one of his long ears as he thought about what to say, “I know about the war.” You felt your blood go cold. “The elementals wanted power and control of Cornlatta. So they attacked the Royal family. The royal scientist made a collar to weaken the elementals and it gave the kingdom the opportunity to take back control and lock up the offending elemental mages.”

You were silent for a long time. That…was all wrong. That is what the Royalty of Cornlatta was telling everyone? That the elementals had wanted power? You were but a child but even you knew none of your parents or friends wanted anything of the sort. They just wanted to live their lives. Your hand started to shake and you had to clench your free hand onto it to keep it from shaking. “That….that’s wrong.” You said softly.

Looking up at a confused monster child you gave a sad smile, “I know you probably won’t believe me. You’ve been told something by your teachers and parents but… I was there Asriel. I was a child…around your age but I was there. No one wanted power, no one was making any plans against the Royal family.” You closed your eyes starting to feel the fear of that night.

“It started slow. The Royals stated that all elemental mages be listed. We needed to go to the castle and register ourselves and our magic. It was a few days that we noticed that no one was coming back. When we demanded to know what had happened…the collars came out. The guards would quickly throw a collar on someone. The collars didn’t just weaken us…it would kill us. It would drain our magic until there was nothing left.”

With your eyes closed you couldn’t see the fear and terror on Asriel’s face. “We fought back. Of course we did. We were being killed for no reason other that being more powerful that the mages. While we had all that power no one wanted to hurt innocents. The guards played dirty and wouldn’t let us leave but wouldn’t attack us unless there were others in the way. One of the last earth mages was able to make a tunnel for us to escape. The archers found us. They shot us down. My mother was able to get me into the woods. I don’t know if anyone else made it out but I’ve been on my own since then.”

When you opened your eyes you saw tears starting to form in Asriel’s eyes. Your eyes widened and you held up your hands, “Oh! I’m so sorry!” You said starting to freak out, “I didn’t mean to make you cry. I just…I haven’t talked about this before and I guess I just got too into it.”

Asriel wasn’t stopping though so you did the only thing you could think of. You moved your hand and a piece of metal floated over to you. You made sure that Asriel was watching before you started to move your fingers to force the magic in your body to move the metal into the form you wanted it. In just a few minutes a perfect figurine of Asriel was being set onto the table in front of him. Asriel’s eyes went wide. He wiped his eyes and picked it up.

“It’s solid.” He said and looked up, “how can you do that? Whenever Grillby makes something it vanishes after awhile.”

You wondered who this Grillby was but you assumed he was an elemental monster. You smiled a bit seeing that Asriel wasn’t crying anymore, “Elemental monsters make their elements through their body. That’s why they are made of their element. I use my element from the natural resource. I can’t make metal appear out of nowhere. I have to have metal near by to use. But that means mine stays.” You pointed towards some of the swords you had made but never sold, “That’s how I became a blacksmith. I push small amounts of magic into the metal to make my blades.”

Asriel looked up and his eyes went very wide, “You’re The Luna!” He screamed standing up in his chair, “I’ve seen the guards with your swords! They are so awesome! I’ve always wanted one!” He said holding his hands out like he was holding a sword. “I wanna learn how to fight but my mother says I’m too young.”

You blushed and laughed softly at him knowing your swords. “She is probably right. But I can make you a dull blade for you to practice with. That might be alright for your mother.” You ruffled the fur on his head, “The next time I come back to Home I could possibly make you a real one. As long as you keep my secret.”

Asriel nodded and sat back down, “Of course! I always keep my promise.”

You chuckled a bit and pointed to the small bed you had in the back of your caravan. “Get some sleep. I’ll wake you in the morning alright?” 

The small goat boy nodded before jumping to the bed. He snuggled down and looked up at you before closing his eyes, “Thank you for saving me.”

You rubbed his head, “It’s no problem little one.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

When morning came you sat up to stretch. You had slept sitting up in your one chair to give Asriel the bed. Looking over at him you saw he was still asleep. Smiling softly you got up and moved around the caravan silently. He needed more sleep and you need to release a bit more magic if you were going back to Home. Walking outside you pulled a large piece of metal out with you. Looking around you didn’t see anyone on the road.

You held your hands out and pushed magic into the metal. It creaked and groaned as it took shape. You made a sword, a staff, a spear, an axe and then let the metal settle on a large broad sword. Sighing you brought the sword to your hands and placed the luna moth at the base before going back inside. You set the sword with the others and shook your clothes a bit to relax a bit.

Asriel was still asleep so you went back outside to untie the horse. Packing up the water and food you tied your horse to the front of your caravan. You smiled and patted the horse lightly. “Ready old girl? We have to go back to Home for something.” You said to the horse. The horse only huffed. 

Chuckling you shut the door and climbed up to take the reigns of the horse. You turned the caravan around and started to go back towards Home. The sun was coming up over the horizon as you rode along. The time alone gave you time to think about what you talked to Asriel about last night. He had been told lies and if that was what he was told then others were told that. You sighed sadly. History was written by the winners. But to make it seem like the elemental mages were being held as prisoners was something that gave you false hope.

Were some of your people still alive? The collars would kill an elemental in hours depending on the power they possessed. You had seen one die in three hours. One person lasted more than a day before they died. You shivered remembering watching people die. Watching the magic being sucked from their bodies until there was nothing left for them to even open their eyes.

Your thoughts were interrupted by a knock on the caravan. Blinking you looked down, “(y/n)? Can I sit with you? It’s boring in here!” Asriel called out.

You smiled and stopped the caravan for him, “Come on up Asriel. Just make sure the door latches.” You called and waited.

Soon Asriel was climbing up to the front of the caravan to sit with you. He smiled up at you and you chuckled. “How was your sleep?”

Asriel looked at his lap, “It was fine…a little scary not being home but I maneged.”

You leaned over and lightly tapped your shoulder to him, “You’re brave. Most kids would be too homesick to sleep.”

Asriel puffed his chest, “I am brave! I have to be.” 

While that interested you you knew it wasn’t your place to ask details. Still..you could give some advice, “You can be scared and brave at the same time. Being brave is when you are so afraid but you push through to help because you know it’s the right thing to do.”

He nodded at your words and the conversation lulled into things that he wanted to talk about. You learned a bit about him. He liked to watch the guard as they practiced and he had a crush on a girl. He wouldn’t give you much details about her but you knew he liked her. You told him more about your magic and some things that you could do. He was interested to know more about your history that your parents had told you when they were still alive. 

Soon you were coming to the gates of Home. You were a bit confused to see the guards more alert then they usually were. The gates were shut and the guards were squinting to see you. As you got closer their swords came out and they screamed out, “Halt! State your business!”

You pulled your caravan to a stop and held up your hands, “I was on the road last night and found this boy being taken by bandits. I brought him back to bring him to his family.” You said nodding your head to Asriel.

What shocked you was Asriel waving his hand shyly, “Hi Lorgon.”

A rabbit guard looked next to you and his ears twitched, “Prince Asriel!”

Your eyes went wide, “Prince?” You didn’t have anything else you could say as the second guard rushed you and yanked you from the caravan. You cried out as you hit the ground and the guard pulled your hands behind your back. 

“Wait stop!” Asriel yelled but he was ignored as the guard spoke over you.

“You are under arrest for the kidnapping of Prince Asriel!”

“Kidnapping?! I was bringing him back!” You shouted but didn’t fight them. You couldn’t show your magic here.

“You’ll be able to speak when you face the King and Queen.” He said yanking you up. “Take the caravan inside and get the prince to his parents! I shall take our prisoner to the dungeon!”

You looked back towards Asriel who was trying to get to you screaming for you to be released. The rabbit guard was holding him back and was walking towards the castle. You knew he was at least safe but you didn’t know what was going to happen to you now. Meeting the King and Queen was NOT something you wanted to ever do.

But things never went according to plan.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Uh oh. Looks like Reader should have thought a bit more about who she was saving. Wonder whats going to happen to her! :D See you all next time! <3


	3. Cornered

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I felt bad for leaving you all on a cliffhanger, so I made this chapter fairly quick. I hope you guys like it as it's a ramp up to the plot.

The throne room was a glorious thing to see. The room was open so wide that you believe half of the kingdom could have fit inside. Pillars stood against the walls and framed a window between two pillars all the way down the room. From the pillars there were arches going to the ceiling that crossed and weaved to create intricate patterns. You could have stared for hours and still found something new each time you looked.

In the far back but not against the wall there were two thrones that were on a raised part of the floor. It was like who ever made the room didn’t want to royalty to sit on the same level as who they would be talking to. The two chairs were similar but also different from each other. One was quite large and seemed to have small flower designs carved into the legs. It was gold with purple accents, while the other was purple with gold accents. The other also had snails carved into the legs. There was a smaller, wooden, chair near the purple throne. It was a bit plain but had child-like scribbles of swords and battles in the wood that you could easily assume it belonged to Asriel. 

Candles and the sunlight from outside lit the large room enough that you could keep your breathing down a little. The only problem was you wanted to panic. You were in the throne room of Home about to face sentence from the King and Queen of Monsters. Your hands were chained behind your back and you were on your knees in front of the chairs. Two swords were crossed under your head preventing you from relaxing in your stance. It took all of your control to keep your magic from sparking in your panic. 

Before you had time to calm yourself more a door opened. Glancing to your right you saw a door slightly behind the thrones open and guards started to pour out. The first to come in was the fish woman you had just made a sword for yesterday. Behind her was a sight you never thought you would see. A man made of fire! Your throat closed seeing the elemental monster and had to quickly look away from him. The skeleton from yesterday followed behind him and you couldn’t help but feel tension leave your shoulders. He was smiling and still rubbing his hand on the sword you had made.

More guards filtered in and when they took their places next to the thrones you noticed the fish woman took stand next to the larger chair, while the fire elemental took stand next to the other chair. It was then you noticed they had slight differenced in their armor. While one had more gold, the other had more purple. Did that mean they were head of different sections? 

The thought left as two more people came out of the door, both skeletons. The first was tall and had cracks on his skull. He held his hands in front of himself with his fingers touching but not his palms that you could see had holes in them. He glanced at you then moved to stand in between both thrones. The last skeleton, this one smaller than the other two. He seemed to have a permanent grin on his skull and a lazy walk as he moved to sit on the raise platform in front of the throne with snails.

Then…The King and Queen entered. The Queen entered first and you could see Asriel in her arms. He had his head tucked into his mothers fur and you could already see your mistake. How could you not have recognized him? The royal family had been goat monsters for centuries! You could see in the gaze that the Queen gave you that Asriel had her eyes. When the King walked out you could see that Asriel looked like his father. The King did not look happy, he looked pissed, as he walked into the room holding a giant red trident. 

The Queen took a seat in the chair with snails and the King took the larger chair. Asriel turned in his mother’s hold and you could see the sadness in his eyes. That didn’t lift your spirits that this would go well. You really hoped you wouldn’t have to expose yourself to save your neck. All you could do was wait as they watched you.

The cracked skeleton brought a hand to his teeth and gave a soft cough. He looked towards the King then the Queen, “This woman was brought to you as she was found with Prince Asriel.”

The King glared down at you, “Why did you take my son?” he demanded.

You held your head high knowing you hadn’t done anything wrong, “I didn’t. I was bringing him back to you.”

The statement makes the Prince speak up, “Dad please! She saved me! I’m telling the truth!”

The King seems to ignore his son for now, “My son tells me that he was taken by four men in the night. How is it that you saved him? These men were armed and were on horse back.”

The way he said it seemed like Asriel had already told him what happened. Everything, and you were expected to expose yourself to him. Glancing at Asriel you saw him give a small shake of his head. You didn’t know if that was to say not to talk or that he didn’t break his promise. You didn’t want to expose yourself but you couldn’t stay silent. “I threw a sword at one of the horses. The rest stopped and I was able to fight them off and keep Prince Asriel safe in my caravan for the night.”

“You, a small human girl, took down four men with swords.” He seemed to be almost laughing at you but you could only tell by the slight smirk on his face.

You arched your brow, “What does my race or _gender_ have to do with a fight?” you asked feeling offended. Even though it was only because of your magic but you weren’t about to tell them that.

The King seemed shocked but the Queen…you could see her smirking slightly at your comment. Shaking your comment off and ignoring it, the King glared again, “Why did you wait to come back until now?”

“I didn’t want to travel in the night.” You gave smile, “There are dangerous people out at night.”

You were pushing your luck. You knew it, the guards knew it and the King knew it. The Queen finally spoke up, “Sans.” The small skeleton looked back at his Queen. “Tell me what you see. Can we trust her?”

The skeleton turned back to you and you saw his eye’s flare up with blue magic. You felt a brush against your soul and your blood went cold. He…he was looking at your soul. You pulled your magic tight against you, tighter then you ever thought you could. He was going to see! He was going to expose you! This was the end for you! After what seemed like an eternity the pressure left you and his eyes returned to normal white eye lights. He looked back at his Queen and you couldn’t breath.

“she’s got a brave soul. bright orange with only a few chips. no LV or EXP. i believe her.” He said.

You stared at him shocked and confused. There was…no way he hadn’t seen your magic…what was his game? Was this a trap? What was going on?! The Queen nodded to Sans and waved her hand at the guards, “Release her.”

“Tori!” The King yelled glaring at his wife.

She only glared back at him, “Our son doesn’t lie. This woman saved his life and you are treating her like a criminal. Even our Judge says she is a good human. What more do you need Asgore?”

Asgore looked from his wife to you. While they were talking the guards had moved the swords from your neck and had released the chains across your wrists. Asgore watched you and spoke again, “I have one last question for you human. When my guards took your caravan they searched inside and found weapons. So many weapons. Why do you have so many?”

You blinked at his question as you rubbed your wrists, “I’m a blacksmith, Your Highness.”

The fish woman’s eyes went wide and she took a step forward, “I knew I recognized you from somewhere!” she shouted then jerked realizing she had spoke out of turn. She moved her foot back and stared ahead.

The King glanced at his guard, “Undyne. Explain.”

The fish woman, Undyne, turned on her heel to face her King, “I know this woman. Somewhat. She has been in the kingdom before.” The woman pulled out her own blade you could feel the faint bits of your magic in the metal. You had made that blade years ago, “She is the Luna. A blacksmith that a lot of our soldiers have weapons from.”

Asgore looked from the blade to you. Before he could speak the Queen cut him off again, “Are those the blades you were telling us about a few weeks ago, Undyne?”

The question made you scared again. You didn’t know how much longer you could take this up and down on your nerves. It was hurting your gut and making it harder for you to keep your magic in check. It didn’t help that the skeleton named Sans wasn’t taking his eyes off of you.

Undyne nodded, “Yes. These swords haven’t broken. Even after years of use.”

You blinked. You didn’t know that. Was that because of your magic or because of the metal you were using. The thought was dashed as you knew that you didn’t use any special type of metal. But Undyne’s words seemed to make something click in the King. He stood up from his throne. “Speak your name, Human.”

You gulped but complied and told him your name. “We have been looking for you for awhile now ___.” He motioned to Undyne, “I had my head of guard come to you to request more of your swords but she told me that you were only able to make one.”

His words make you remember the fish woman more clearly. She had come to you requesting swords. Not just the one for the new recruit. She had requested over fifty swords. You had told her you only had enough materials for one more. That was just an excuse to not have to stay in the city any longer than you had. She had taken the last one and been on her way. You gave a nod, “I…I remember. I ran out material.” You state, keeping your story straight.

The King grinned, “If it is materials you need then you shall have all the materials you’ll need. In return I want you to make my entire guard swords, shields and armor. You are an amazing blacksmith from what I’ve heard and we could use all of your skills.”

Your eyes went wide. How did your day come to this? You were brought here under the assumption you had stolen the Prince! Now you were being told that they wanted to hire you to make weapons?! You felt your soul tighten, but not from anyone looking into it, it was from your own fear. You couldn’t stay here. If you stayed here to make things for them it would only be a matter of time before your secret was out. Finally, you shook your head, “I…I can’t…While I appreciate the offer, Your Highness, I like to be on the open road.” You said hoping that would be the end of it.

The room was silent until a small huff of laughter came from the small skeleton. You glanced at him and froze seeing him still staring at you. He held out his arms in a shrug, “it’s strange that anyone would turn down such a generous offer.” His eyes lidded a bit and you saw small wisps of magic come from his eyes, “if you leave back to the wild..who knows what could happen to you…”

Was…was he threatening you? Your hands clenched at your sides. He knew. He knew and was using it against you. If you left here would he tell Cornlatta they had missed an elemental mage? Would he tell his King and Queen what you were? You felt like your staring contest with the skeleton lasted a long time before it stopped with him giving you a lazy wink. Not wanting to look at him anymore your gaze shifted to Asriel. He was watching you with hope and also sadness because he knew you would mostly likely try to walk away from this. But would the skeleton let you?

The Queen’s voice brought you out of your thoughts. “My dear, you’ve stated already that it is dangerous out in the wilds. If you come and become our blacksmith you would have a room in your studio, as much material as you would ever need and if you request it help in making anything.” She gave a tender smile, “Please, let us repay you for saving our son. Stay for a time and make what you can. If you still wish to leave we will not stop you.”

You weighed your options. If you said no, the skeleton would probably out you to either his kingdom or the mages and you would be hunted. If you said yes you would have to keep your magic buried and run the risk of being exposed. Either option left you with being exposed. Staying would leave you with metal all around to allow you an escape if needed. Leaving would make you live your life looking over your shoulder. You had been backed into a corner and you didn’t like it. But you would take the path that lead to a more definite survival.

“Alright….two weeks….I’ll give this two weeks.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry that Grillby hasn't talked with our reader yet. It's uh... gonna be a bit longer without him talking much. D: Hope you guys enjoyed the chapter! :D See you all next time~


	4. Exposed

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! I am BACK! Hopefully for good but we shall see. My mental state and the summer heat have made it hard for me to keep writing but I'm going to try and push past both! That means we are going back to WEEKLY UPDATES! All three of my stories will be getting them! Bone Doctor on Monday's, Enemy Fire on Wednesday's and Crow and Dove on Friday's! I hope you guys haven't forgotten about the stories. <3 I really look forward to seeing what you all think about the future updates. :3
> 
> On another note I have a BIG announcement to make! I have a beta reader! :D Her name is Foxy and she is going to be helping me on all my future projects! :D Here is her info if you ever need her. She's AMAZING and really helped me get back into the swing of writing. :3
> 
> Beta-Reader: [Foxytales](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Foxytales)/[Tumblr](http://foxystales.tumblr.com)

The walk outside of the hall was quiet. You were following behind the King and Queen. Asriel was still in her arms while Undyne and the fire monster were leading the charge. The tall skeleton knight and Sans were walking behind you. It was a strange little parade of people walking through the castle but there was nothing you could do about that. They were taking you to where their last blacksmith had been working and staying. The walk gave you time to calm your nerves and magic as you realized that you were honestly doing this. You were staying here for two weeks to make them weapons and armor. Two weeks of holding your magic tightly so none of them found out. It was going to be a long two weeks.

When the door opened to the courtyard you were taken aback by the sheer beauty of it. There were fruit trees littering the area and under them were flowers of every kind. You had never seen so many flowers in one place other than the wilds. It was breathtaking. You could tell that everything was well maintained and groomed to perfection. The path through the courtyard was also kept and there were benches around for people to sit and admire the flowers. It was also larger than the hall you had been in. It seems to stretch for a good mile before you came to another building. This one was up against the wall that protected the castle. Looking up, you could see a tower behind the building. It was made of stone and was two stories. There were a few windows on the top, but the bottom half of the building only had two large doors in the front.

Undyne walked up to the doors and with the fire monster’s help they opened the doors. When they opened up you saw that they slid to the sides to be left open. The inside was generic but more than you’ve ever had with your caravan. There were around three anvils of varying sizes and two tables against the wall that held various tools along it. In the two back corners of the room were two large fire places. Made of decent stone, you saw black charred wood inside and you could tell it hadn’t been used in a long time. You knew you would be moving some things around, but not when everyone was here.

The King and Queen were watching you as you took stock of everything. “What do you think?” The Queen asked you and you could hear the slight amusement in her voice.

You blushed, realizing you had been walking towards the shop. Looking over at her you gave a small smile, “It’s more than I’ve had, I’ll say that.”

The Queen nods, “There is a stair case against the right wall that goes up to the second floor. You can acquaint yourself with that later if you wish.”

Asriel then took this moment to squirm in his mother’s hold until she placed him down, “Can I stay here and talk with ___?” He asked looking up at his parents with a pleading look in his eyes.

She made a face and looked from you to her son, “I’m sure that she has a lot to do to get used to her new work station.”

Asriel then turned his pleading eyes at you and you felt a stab in your soul. You made a dramatic face and put your hand over your eyes, “Not the eyes….. I’ve only seen them twice but they are too powerful..” You joke making everyone around you give a light chuckle. Smiling, you move your hand down and shrug at the Queen, “I don’t mind if he stays. He was interested in my work last night and I’m sure he just wants to ask more questions.”

The Queen gave a sigh, “Alright. You may stay but Grillby is to stay with you.” She says nodding to the fire monster.

When Grillby took a step forward, Sans moved up next to you, “i got this toriel. i’ll watch the prince for you. grillby should stay with you.”

You felt your blood run cold again as the Queen nodded, “If you insist Sans. Don’t let him be late for lunch.” She says and the parade of the Royalty and their guards left.

You glanced at Sans but your hand was taken as Asriel dragged you into the shop. Once inside, you could see the staircase and you could see more tools and gloves. Asriel then looked up at you and gave a soft smile, “I’m sorry…but I kept my promise.”

You ruffled his fur and could feel the small nubs of horns on his skull as you did so, “I know Asriel. It’s not your fault.” You say then wrinkle your nose, “But you could have told me you were the prince.” 

Asriel looked at the ground, “I didn’t want you to treat me differently.”

Feeling a ping in your soul, you bent down to be level with him. You knew exactly what he meant. Being from a dead race meant you couldn’t let anyone know what you were or they would treat you differently (or try to kill you). You picked up his face so he could look at you, “I would never do that.” You say softly and poke his nose.

Asriel giggles a bit and hugs you tightly. You smile and hug him as well. You had only met him yesterday but you would protect this small child. The thought of you being so attached already scared you. You would only be here for two weeks. What would happen after that? You might never see him again. Your thoughts were pulled back to reality when you heard a cough and the loud screech of the doors closing to the workshop.

Letting go of Asriel, you stood up and found yourself standing in front of him. You watched as Sans picked his pockets and pulled out a striker. The striker lit up with blue magic and went around to each candle in the room lighting them all up. When it was done you were able to see more in the shop and Sans still had that disturbing smile. You could feel your soul speeding up wondering what he was planning.

Sans looked you over and chuckled, “calm down there. i’m not going to hurt you. just wanna talk is all.”

“Talk about what?”

Sans grin got a bit wider and he held his hands out, “about the fact that your soul is full of magic. need to know if i lied to my queen.” He looked down at Asriel then back up at you, “but seeing as you are protecting the prince against me, you aren’t all that bad.”

Gulping you thought you could see an opening and you gave a shrug, “You called it. I’m a mage… Just a blacksmith mage..”

Sans arched a bone brow, “now i know you’re lying. your magic is similar to grillby’s. so start telling the truth.”

Your hand started to shake and you couldn’t speak. He knew…he was….what was his game?! Before you could speak Asriel moved in front of you and held out his arms, “Be nice to her Sans! She saved my life and I promised to protect her secret! If you hurt her or tell my parents then you’ll be breaking my promise and I know how much you hate breaking those.”

Sans looked down at Asriel and you could see the gears turning in his eye lights. For a skeleton, he was just as easy to read as anyone else. Finally he gave a shrug, “fine. i’ll keep quiet if you tell me what kind of ‘mage’ you are.” He moved his head around the room. “show me what i’m keeping secret.”

You could hear in his voice that he wasn’t going to let up. This monster had basically threatened you in the hall and was forcing you to show your magic to him. Your magic was already bubbling but you couldn’t let yourself lose your cool. He was baiting you. Wanting you to expose your full power so any monster near could feel it and then there wouldn’t be a secret to keep. You would have broken it yourself. Leaning down you pick up a piece of metal. It was small and barely fit your palm. Closing your hand you sent the smallest amount of magic into it to form it into a metal rod and open your palm again. 

“Metal.”

Sans arched his brow and gave a shrug, “explains why you became a blacksmith.”

You nodded and looked him over, “Two weeks… After that you’ll never have to see me again.” You say and don’t miss Asriel’s shoulders slump down a bit at your words.

Sans only shrugged again, “fine.” He then leaned against the door and closed his eyes. You didn’t understand how he did that, as he was a skeleton but you just assumed the answer would be magic.

Turning away from him you bent down in front of Asriel again, “I’m sorry that I’ll have to leave but you understand why, right?”

The small child looked at the ground giving a small pout but nodded, “I just don’t understand why you are running. Can’t you just pretend to be a mage?”

You gave a sad smile, “I can’t use magic like mages can. I can’t make objects float, I can’t heal and I can’t manipulate souls. All I can do is work my magic on metal. That is what separates the elementals from the mages. There is no pretending.”

It seemed like Asriel was going to say something but before he could there was a knock at the large doors behind Sans. All three of you turned towards the door. Sans lifted a hand and the doors opened up by themselves to reveal the two guards who had ‘arrested’ you just a few hours ago. They seemed nervous and wouldn’t look at you. Arching your brow you waited to see what they wanted.

The rabbit guard, you remember Asriel had called him Lorgon, coughed into his hand before speaking, “We… We apologize for treating you roughly this morning, ma’am.” He said and finally looked up at you. “We were instructed to bring your caravan over here. Your horse is being kept in the stables. You may check on him any time you need.” The two men then bowed a bit before turning and walking away.

That was…interesting. Walking towards the doors you looked out and saw your caravan was placed perpendicular with the building you were in. Smiling softly you relaxed knowing that your things were all here with you. You liked to use your own gloves and tools when you worked. They had been broken in by your magic enough that they relaxed you while you worked. Going to the door and opening it up you saw that your things weren’t damaged or thrown around too much.

Asriel ran up next to you, “Can I watch you work?”

You smirked down at him and ruffled his fur again, “Sure, kid.”

You were about to walk into your caravan to grab your tools when Sans spoke up behind you, “sorry my prince but your mom wanted you to go to lunch and it’s getting close. maybe you can come back once you eat.” He said making Asriel deflate and nod softly.

“Don’t be sad.” You said trying to cheer him up, “I’ll still be here.” It was true. You were essentially trapped her for two weeks. You didn’t think you could leave the castle walls and that was something you would have to do soon.

Asriel took it at face value though and nodded his head. He smiled and gave you a hug before walking with Sans back across the courtyard. With them both gone, you walked inside your caravan and picked up your gloves and hammer. You needed to take your mind off of this whole event and the best way to do that was to make something. Walking out, you went back into the building to set them down. You need to find the wood and the metal they said you could use.

It didn’t take long for you to find the metal. All you had to do was feel around with a small bit of your magic and you could find the large pile fairly quickly. It, along with the wood, were outside and around the building. There was a stack of wood and a large pile of metal. They were both protected from the elements by a small overhang. You picked up a few logs first and grunted. You had grown a bit too complacent with just metal. The material was always so light for you that when you actually picked up something not metal you were reminded that your strength needed a bit more work. 

Taking three logs into the building you placed them in front of the forge on the left side of the walls. You found a striker hanging on the side of the forge and smiled. It took a few times of trying, as the striker hadn’t been used in some time, but soon there was a small fire forming. You blew on it softly, adding a few bits of straw and twigs that were in a bucket next to the forge as well to feed to the building fire. When the fire started to grow you put the first log in. It took a bit more time for you to be able to place the next one in. You needed the fire as hot as you could get it. Which meant that the room was heating up quickly. 

Moving away from the forge you went to your gloves and pulled the strip of string you had tied around them off. You then used it to tie up your hair to keep it off of your neck. That cooled you a bit but with the forges in the building there wasn’t many places the heat could escape, even with the doors open. How did the last blacksmith do this? They must have been a monster who wasn’t affected by heat. You were going to have to ask the royal family to make a forge outside. You blinked, a bit startled by your thoughts. You were thinking long term? You couldn’t do that.

Shaking your head you huffed and walked back out to your caravan. You need a change of clothes if you were going to stay in this heat while you worked. Once inside you pulled off your long shirt and pants. Even that was blissful to you as you had already begun to sweat. Taking a rag and drying yourself off you looked for something. You found a light short sleeve shirt you had bought in Dozia, the human kingdom. You took it one step further and pulled the material up to tie below your breasts. It left your stomach exposed but you didn’t expect anyone to be around right now and you would pull it down when Asriel came back. With that done you pulled on some shorts. They were for men but you didn’t care. You refused to wear skirts. Finally in cool clothes and grabbing your own pair of gloves you walked back out and went around the side to gather some metal.

Once back in the heat of your work station you knew the fire was finally hot enough. You placed some metal in a stone cup and grabbed the large pliers to place the cup over the fire. Smiling you began to watch the metal start to heat and melt. This was one of your favorite things to watch. You were so captivated by the molten metal that you didn’t hear the two figures walking towards you. It was only when you heard someone clearing their throat that you jumped and turned around. The fire monster guard was standing in front of you and Asriel was next to him. The one thing that caught your attention was that the fire man was looking down at your body and you could see that a few flames on his face were turning blue. It was then you realized you were exposing a lot of skin. Blushing you tried to take a step back forgetting the forge was behind you. 

Quicker than you expected the monster reached out and grabbed your wrist and pulled you flush against his armor. You face started to heat up more as your hands were held against his chest and his other hand wrapped around your waist. His…. Face… Was so close to yours. Then, in a deep rumbling crackle that sounded like the fire that was behind you, he spoke, “Please be careful, fire is quite dangerous.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> He has spoken! And it's such a cheesy pick up line! XD I thought it was perfect. Hope you guys liked the chapter! See you all next week. :3


	5. Fire

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm glad you all are enjoying the story! :D It makes me so happy! Here is the next chapter. :3
> 
> Beta-Reader: [Foxytales](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Foxytales)/[Tumblr](http://foxystales.tumblr.com)

The heat on your face had nothing to do with the forge that was behind you. It had everything to do with the man made of fire in front of you. You gave a small laugh at his joke and pulled from his arms. You needed to get a hold of yourself. This was an elemental monster. His magic would be similar to yours and would be easier for him to feel. The tight control you already had tightened more in your soul.

“Thank you, Sir. I wouldn’t want to deal with a burn on my first day.” You say trying to lighten the mood in the workshop.

The fire man seemed to misunderstand your nervousness and took a few steps back. He bowed lowly, his head looking to the ground and when he came back up he was all business, “Forgive me for the startle. My name is Grillby. I am Commander of the Queen’s Guard and watch after Asriel at times. He wanted to come back here to watch you work.”

His rank made you wonder again how they had their guards set up. Grillby’s armor was made of a rich metal, the edges were colored a rich purple that seemed to compliment the red of his flames nicely. There were a few dents and scratches in the metal and you could appreciate them. It always made you laugh when you saw soldiers with pristine armor. It only showed they had never been in battle. This man had been in battle and had come out the other side.

“Of course. My name is ___.” You say respectfully even though you know he most likely got your name earlier when you were brought before the King and Queen. You then glanced down at Asriel, “How was your lunch little prince?”

Asriel scowled at your nickname, “It was fine. I couldn’t wait to get back here, though. What are you going to make?” He asked rushing towards the forge. 

Not even thinking you grabbed his shoulder to keep him from the heat. He glanced up at you, a bit shocked you had stopped him, but didn’t try to pull away from you, “I’m going to be making you that practice sword I promised.” 

The small goat monster lit up with joy at the thought. He turned back to Grillby, “Did you hear that? I’m getting a sword from The Luna!” he said happily.

You could see the worry on the elementals face. It surprised you that you could see expression in fire but somehow this man had them. Before he could worry more you spoke up, “It’s going to be a light dull blade, Asriel. Something to practice with. You won’t be able to seriously hurt anyone or yourself… Just remember that.”

While Asriel seemed sad about that, Grillby seemed relieved. You gave a light chuckle at the two emotions and turned back to your work. Since Grillby was here you couldn’t use any kind of magic. This was going to be a bit hard for you but you could manage. You moved around the room looking for what you needed. You never had to worry about not using magic, so you never had to use a cast before. If you had been smart, you would have kept the metal in the bar shape you found it and gone from there. But you thought you could work with the molten metal like before. You had gone off instinct rather than knowledge of your surroundings. You finally found what you were looking for and thanked the stars it was around the right size. Picking up the large bit of stone you moved towards the forge. Once you set it down you saw Asriel trying to slip closer to look. What you had set down was a large stone that had been carved into a shape of a crude sword. It was a mold, something you would rather not use but you could work with it.

Slipping on your gloves you took the pliers and grasped the stone cup with the molten metal. You moved the cup to hover over the mold and carefully poured the metal in. You had to be careful so that it laid out even. You could grind down any excess but you didn’t want to make the job too much later. With that done you placed the cup on the side of the fire and let the metal cool a bit. You could take this time to turn back towards the two in your workshop. Again… you were thinking of this as yours… you couldn’t keep doing that. Ignoring your inner voice you smiled at Asriel.

“Have you had someone training you with wooden sword?” You asked crossing your arms in front of your chest.

Asriel gave a nod and moved his hands in front of him in the stance of holding a sword. “Of course! I’m learning from one of the best! Undyne the Undying!” He said and you recognized the name of the fish woman. 

“Oh? And what has she taught you?” As Asriel proceeded to show you all of his moves you let yourself enjoy this. It was going to be a tough time for you these next few weeks but if you could see this monster child so happy… it was worth it. 

You were halfway done with the sword when you heard a woman scream. You couldn’t hear if it was a word but you could hear the anger in it. You glanced over at the door to see Grillby looking a bit nervous. He turned towards the door and you watched as a bunny monster stomped up to him with an angry expression. There were a few patches of fur that seemed to be singed or black like she had tried to fight a house fire and lost. When a small green fire monster ran up behind her you realized you were probably right.

The green fire girl wore an adorable violet dress that went down to her knees and kept her shoulders bare. Her green fire flicked wildly around her head as she bounced on her feet in front of Grillby. The woman didn’t spare her a look as she pushed her finger into Grillby’s armor angrily.

“This is it Grillby! I can’t do this anymore!” The bunny screamed as she threw her hands in the air, “She is burning everything in my house and on me! Teach her how to control her fire and find someone else to watch her, because I’m done!” 

Grillby looked down at the girl, who now seemed to realize why she was there. Her happy mood started to fade as her flames dimmed and flow slower. Grillby took the woman’s arm and walked her a bit away to speak with her in private. The girl stood in the same spot watching them. You had to assume that this was Grillby’s daughter. If that was true then… where was her mother? 

Your soul twisted seeing the sad flames pop around her head. You never could see a child sad. You always wanted to give them something better. Placing the sword and gloves down you walked right up to the small fire girl and smiled, “Hello, what’s your name little spark?”

The girl jumped as if she didn’t know anyone else was around and turned to look at you. “Fuku…” She said softly. Her voice was like an ember trying to ignite. It was so much softer than Grillby’s.

“I’m ___. It’s very nice to meet you Fuku.” You said and tilted your head, “How old are you?”

Fuku looked down at her hands and then held up four little fire fingers. You could see that she wanted to smile and her flames were starting to pick back up.

“Four? Oh my goodness!” you said cupping your face in mock surprise, “You can’t be four, you look too mature.” 

That got a smile from the fire girl. You heard a rich giggle that had a similar sound to a camp fire crackling and she shook her head at you, “No! I’m fur!” She said not able to say four correctly. You could see and feel her fire intensify. With her good mood her fire started to grow in height and temperature. You ignored the building heat, used to it from your time working with forges.

“Well, you may be four but you are so beautiful.” You say having no fear and lightly touching her fire that made her hair. You felt the singe on your skin and when she smiled more you realized that the little fire girl didn’t know she was burning things. You glanced over at Grillby wondering what he was teaching the girl, if at all. Grillby was staring back at you with awe and fear. You didn’t think the fear was from you touching the girl. You were sure he knew that you were being burned.

Pulling your hand back you looked back at Fuku, “Would you like to help me with something Fuku?” You asked and when she nodded her head quickly you stood up and held out your hand. She grasped it tightly and you could feel the fire on her body heating yours. You grit your teeth but didn’t pull away. Everyone was acting afraid of this little girl and growing up like that wouldn’t do well for her. 

You walked her deeper into the workshop and saw Asriel sitting near his incomplete sword watching you. You took Fuku towards the forge and let go of her hand. You didn’t even look at it as you picked up a small piece of metal and held it up to her, “I want you to hold this piece of metal and let your fire melt it.” You said picking up the stone cup and holding it under her hands. “Let the metal fall into this cup when you’ve melted it ok?”

Fuku gave a fierce concentrated nod and she took the piece of metal. She stared at it hard and in only a few seconds the metal started to melt and drip into the cup. When it was all gone from her hand she smiled brightly, “I di it!” She shouted and you smiled back at her chopped up words.

“Yes you did! Good job Fuku!” You said and picked up another piece. “Now, for this piece… don’t let it melt at all. Can you do that?” You asked not moving the cup from under her hands.

Fuku nodded with confidence and took the metal. She concentrated but… after just a minute it started to melt. Fuku looked shocked and sad, “bu… no…. I don do dat..” She said as the last bit of metal melted in her hands.

You gave a soft smile and pet Fuku’s hair again. It burned a bit more on your already wounded hand but you ignored it. “It’s alright Fuku. You’re fire is burning when you don’t want it to. This can be fixed with a bit of control.” You picked up a new piece of metal. “You can practice every day. When the metal doesn’t melt in your hand you have the first step.” You say handing it back to the girl. 

Looking back behind Fuku you could see Grillby trying to continue to talk to the bunny woman but she was storming off. Grillby turned back towards you and saw you working with Fuku. He started towards the two of you and you smiled at the girl. “Why don’t you practice with the little prince while I speak with your father.” You say saying your assumption out loud. Fuku didn’t correct you and ran towards Asriel with your basket of metal. “There is a stone cup next to the other forge Asriel. Make sure to hold it under her hands.” When the boy nodded you turned your attention towards the fire elemental.

When Grillby waked up to you the first thing he did was take your hand. You watched him as he looked over the burns that Fuku had made. While you couldn’t see exact emotions you thought, you could see that he looked conflicted about them. He looked at your face, “You’re injured.”

You gave a wary smile, “It’s not that bad. I’ve gotten worse from learning how to work a forge.” You say giving a shrug and pulling your hand back from him. “I have some healing food in my caravan that I can eat later.”

Grillby only nodded and looked towards the two children, “Thank you…. for talking with her…” his fire seemed to fizzle like he was giving a sigh, “Between my job in the guard and her mother passing… it’s been hard finding time to train her…Thank you for not being afraid.”

“I knew she wasn’t doing it on purpose..” You say looking towards the two as well. “A child shouldn’t have to grow up fearing their abilities or see adults fear them…”

When Grillby shoots you a shocked expression you realize that you’ve spoken too much. Chiding yourself you turn back towards the sword on your table. You are thankful when he doesn’t try to speak with you more. As you placed the gloves back on your hands, you picked up the hammer and the crude sword. Placing the metal into the fire to heat it again you thought about what he had said. Fuku’s mother had passed. You didn’t know if it because she was sick or if she was in the guard like Grillby and had been killed. Was she a fire elemental like her daughter? You couldn’t help but wonder these things and when your glove shifted against a forming blister from holding the hammer. you had to wince. 

Fuku was a prime example of why people feared elementals. Children are ruled by their emotions and when they’re an elemental, it can lead to dangerous things. You could remember being her age and you had plates and cups flying around your house. Because your father was a metal elemental he had most things in the house made of or have pieces of metal for him to control. Your mother… being a water elemental had almost lost her sanity from your few temper tantrums. You could only imagine what Fuku could do if she threw a tantrum.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fuku has joined the cast. :3 How did you all like her? She is so much fun to write! :D


	6. Release

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This has not been a good week for me. I am so sorry that this chapter is a day late. I was in the hospital Monday fr pain and thought I was fine Tuesday then yesterday it started again leaving me bedridden. T_T I'm sorry again. Here is the chapter. I hope you all like it.

The next few days continued in a similar fashion. You would wake up in your caravan, you weren’t comfortable to sleep in the little house above the workshop, and would start the fire in the forge. While you were making swords, Asriel would come to talk with you and practice handling the sword you had made him. He would always come with Grillby and your magic was starting to itch inside of your skin from being held back. The small amounts you tried to let loose in the night weren’t helping you. Keeping your magic so tightly bound in your soul was starting to hurt. You were moving slower and your arm was starting to grow sore from lifting the metal hammer above your head so many times without magic. Asriel seemed to be the only one who noticed though and you were thankful for that.

It was on your third day in the castle that Asriel came to the workshop with Sans. You were a tad confused as to why the skeleton had brought the prince and not Grillby. Not that you weren’t thankful. With Sans here you would be able to use small amounts of magic to hopefully expel some of the excess you were building up. You pushed a bit into your next swing and could feel the small rush leaving your soul. Like blowing dust away from your face. A small gust but a relieving one. You did it a few more times before glancing to Asriel.

The goat prince was standing with his hands clasped in front of him and a worried expression on his face. Putting the hammer down you wiped your brow and walked over to him bending down. “What’s that face for Azzy?” You asked, calling him by the nickname you had given him just the day before.

Asriel gave a soft smile at the name but then looked worried again, “Are you in pain here?” He asked quickly and you knew that he had wanted to ask you for awhile.

You gave a light sigh, “A little. I have to hold my magic back when people are around and because of that I’m building up too much.” You didn’t want to scare the child but you also didn’t want to lie to him. It was a dangerous thing for a mage or monster to not use their magic for long periods of time. The soul was only supposed to hold so much and while your soul was stronger than others, you still ran the risk of soul explosion. You had only ever heard of three cases of soul explosion. Only one was an elemental. None were monsters. They seemed to not run the risk as much because their body was made of magic, so it was used almost all the time.

Asriel seemed to know what you were hinting at because his eyes went wide and he touched your face, “No! You can’t let that happen!” He said firmly but you could hear the quiver in his voice.

You cupped your hands over his on your face and smiled, “I can’t let anyone know about me. I’ll be fine Asriel. You bringing Sans today really helped. I’m able to expel some magic because he knows about it.” You weren’t going to tell him that it wasn’t enough to stop the pain and because you were an elemental, your magic was building back up faster than a regular mage. You didn’t want to lie but not giving him all the information didn’t seem like a lie….much.

The child still looked worried but didn’t say anything more about the subject. He walked towards his sword and picked it up. You watched for a moment as he showed Sans the dull blade and the techniques he had learned. While the sword was dull and small enough for his size, it was still fairly heavy. All swords were. Asriel was on a learning curve from moving from light wooden swords to the heavy metal. Giving a small smile you went back to your work.

In the time you had been here you had been able to make five swords. Not including the one Asriel had. In only three days that was a small accomplishment for you. If you had full access to your powers…well…you had never really released your full power in years. It was too much of a risk of being found if you did. Swinging your hammer again you felt relief from being able to use some magic. 

You didn’t mind the fire monster… and most times that he came, his daughter Fuku would come with him. It seemed that he couldn’t find another sitter for the child. Fuku had been trying more and more to control the fire that made up her body with little luck. She was able to gain a full minute before her fire melted the metal she held but that was as far as she came in three days. You knew it would take more time but… you wondered who would work with her when you were gone. Where was the child now that Asriel was here with Sans and not Grillby?

You were finishing up the sixth sword when you heard Asriel call out, “Mom! Dad!” You jerked your head up and snapped your magic tight into your soul. The action was so quick you flinched at the pain of it. Focusing on what was in front of you, you saw the King and Queen were indeed coming towards the workshop. Undyne and Grillby were flanking them and there was the large skeleton with holes in his hands that you had not gotten the name of yet, walking slightly ahead of the King and Queen.

Standing straighter you placed your tools and gloves down and walked towards the entrance of the workshop. You bowed lightly and heard the skeleton speak to you for only the second time. The first time you had heard his voice was when you were first brought to the King and Queen. He stared at you for a moment before speaking, “King Asgore and Queen Toriel require your attention, blacksmith.” His tone was firm and condescending. It made your eye twitch.

Surprisingly, Sans was the first to speak up, “Dad, seriously? Could you be more of a jerk?” You held back your snort. Apparently this skeleton was his father. You could have assumed that but you didn’t think of it. You also noticed that he wasn’t cursing with Asriel around, you could have thought of a better word to call him.

The older skeleton stood a little straighter and glared down at his son, “Could you be lazier at your job?”

Sans shrugged, “Probably. Want me to try?” He asked giving a smug sort of grin.

You looked from the skeletons to the Royal’s and shrugged your shoulders, “What can I do for you, your Majesty’s?” You asked ignoring the quarrel going on next to you.

Asgore gave a light chuckle at the skeletons and turned to face you, “I wanted to inform you that we will be having a ball soon. In a week’s time actually. It is something we do often with the other kingdoms to keep the peace. We are letting everyone in the palace know that the invitation is open for all to attend. It will be in the courtyard, as it is the largest place to hold so many people.” 

You were a bit shocked and scared. The kingdoms would be coming here? As in… the King and Queen of Cornlatta and Dozia? You didn’t know if you could be around for that. You were already getting weak from holding in your magic away from Grillby. If you had to hold it in from a whole entourage of mage’s… you might not make it. You wracked your brain for any kind of excuse you had. It had to be a good one to get out of this because you could see the hope in Asriel’s eyes. You could really only think of one. It was a big one but you didn’t think it would get you anywhere.

“I… Your Majesty, I don’t have a dress.” You said hoping that it would work.

The Queen’s eyes sparkled and you knew before she even spoke that you would have no choice but to go. “My dear! I can provide you a dress!” She said clapping her furry paws together. “I’ve done so for a fair share of our inner staff. That is why we have a tailor in the castle with us.” 

You gave a small laugh and nodded, “O-oh… of course… How can I refuse then?”

Asriel wrapped his arms around your middle and laughed. He was excited and you could see that clear as day. Giving an inward sigh, you decided that you were going to do everything you could to be there for him. You would have to figure out a way to expel most of your magic before the party. You didn’t know where you could do that without getting caught, but you had sometime to figure it all out.

With that taken care of, the King and Queen wasted little time in returning to their walk around the courtyard. They waved to their son as they left and when they were gone, you let your magic relax just a bit. You needed to start pushing magic away from your body while you could. You had a week to get prepared for this and you couldn’t let yourself be caught. The ball would actually leave you with three days until you could leave the kingdom. If you get through that, it would be smooth sailing for the next three days.

Going back towards your anvil you placed your gloves back on and started to hammer away at the sword in front of you again. You took a bit of a risk by pushing a bit more than you had before. You were a few swings in when Sans and Asriel followed you back into the shop. Sans was the first to speak up about your magic, “might want to go a little easier there. it’s starting to leak out.”

You stopped and turned towards the skeleton. “I haven’t worked around many magic users. If you use magic at the same time that I do, will that give mine a bit of cover?”

Sans gave a strained smile, “i can see what you are going for and the answer is no. if you were a monster than we could… possibly do that but your magic is different from mine. even if i used one of my strongest forms of magic, your magic would spark the interest of anyone near us. plus the fact that it would call my brother to our position because i never use my magic as it is.” He said giving a lazy shrug.

You growled and moved your face closer to the heated metal. The heat let you calm a bit and the close proximity to the metal relaxed your magic. It didn’t make the pressure any better but you were trying to figure that out. “If you can’t help me expel it here… do you have a way to get away from the kingdom to expel my magic?”

Sans seemed to grin even though his teeth didn’t move. “is that all? i got a place.” He said moving his hand out of his pocket. With the flick of his wrist he closed the door to the shop. The fire in the forge kept you out of the dark and you watched Sans lift some metal with his magic and held out his free hand. “take my hand. i know a shortcut.”

Not really knowing what to expect you took your gloved off and walked towards the skeleton judge. Asriel didn’t seem to have any fear as he ran towards Sans and wrapped his arms around his waist. Taking his hand you winced as he squeezed it hard. You were going to complain when the floor went out from under you and your stomach twisted like you were being pulled through a butter churner. When you felt ground under you again you fell to your hands and knees and gasped for air.

Sans dropped the metal near you and Asriel moved to place his hands on your shoulders. “Are you alright ___?”

“sorry kid… forgot it’s a rough trip for newbies.” Sans said next to you.

You looked up to yell at him when you realized that there were trees behind him. Eyes going wide you stood up and looked at your surroundings. You weren’t in the shop anymore… you weren’t even in the kingdom… you couldn’t feel anyone, hear anyone except the birds and cicadas. It wasn’t possible, there was no way that you could be so far in such a short amount of time. Looking towards the skeleton again you saw him giving what you knew was a smug grin.

“How?”

Sans gave a shrug of his shoulders, “i can bend space and time. not a lot of people know I can do it. Mostly the royalty, my family and you. Figured that since I know something so big about you… it’s only fair.”

You gave a small smile, “Thank you.”

Sans nodded, “There’s no one around here. You can use your magic to your fill.” He said moving the metal closer to you.

You looked down at the metal and gave your own grin. “Asriel, stand back.”

When the boy had moved back against the trees with Sans you held out one hand and felt your magic wrap around the metal. There were four block pieces. To a regular blacksmith the metal would be made into four equal swords, two breast plates or one broadsword. To you, the possibilities were endless. You felt your chest become light as you clenched your hand and the metal came together to form one ball. The ball spiked and bubbled as you pushed more of your magic into it. It was like you finally getting to drink after days of being thirsty. You couldn’t give an accurate description of just how good it felt to just let your magic run wild.

Deciding to give the two with you a show you let your other hand move down to hover above the ground. You could feel the minerals that made metal in the ground. If you called enough you would be able to gather more for your ball. The ground under your feet started to dip and bend as you pulled the minerals up. The ball of metal started to grow larger and larger as you went deeper and deeper down in the hole you were creating. You could hear Sans make a noise but you ignored it as you lowered the ball so you could place your hand on it. It melded around your hand and when you pushed up it pulled you out of the hole. You had made metal carry you before. In times when you needed to get away from guards quickly or you couldn’t handle something on your own. It was mostly when you were younger. When you didn’t have full control of your magic.

Once you were on level ground you clapped your hands together. The ball started to ripple faster and faster until you threw all your excess magic at it and the ball exploded into ten smaller balls. You brought them close to you and one by one you started to twist your hands around the ball until it started to take shape. Moving one hand down the metal followed and stopped at a point. As you brought your hand back up the metal hardened into a blade. You laid your hand on the top and pressed your luna mark into the metal as a last touch.

You did this nine more times before you let your breath out and looked back towards the monsters. Sans looked a mixture of shocked and scared, while Asriel just looked excited. Letting the swords lay down on the ground Asriel ran towards you and threw his arms around you.

“That was amazing ____!” he yelled as you laughed and swung him in a circle. “I didn’t know you were strong!”

“Yeah… I’m pretty strong.” You said not wanting to tell the child that you could do a lot more. From the way Sans was watching you, you figured that he didn’t think you were able to do as much as you did. You would have to talk to him about that and maybe ask him to take you out here before the ball so that you could release more magic. It was a conversation for another day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A small peak at what Reader can do. Trust me when I say there will come a time where she will unleash her full potential. <3 See you next week. Hopefully on time. T_T

**Author's Note:**

> Like this? Try some of my other stories:  
> [Tomorrow](http://archiveofourown.org/works/7654375)  
> [Tomorrow OVA](http://archiveofourown.org/works/12199428)  
> [Love, Magic and Murder](http://archiveofourown.org/works/8043208)  
> [The Bone Doctor](http://archiveofourown.org/works/8782894)  
> [The Crow and The Dove](http://archiveofourown.org/works/13307454/chapters/30456636)
> 
> Wanna watch me write? Join me [here!](https://picarto.tv/NekoElena) I'll always talk to everyone~ Questions are always welcome about the stories. <3


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